Bro-Reviews: 2017 Summer Box Office Winners and Losers

Whether you’re a winner or a loser, box office revenue is down significantly compared to last summer.

The Summer movie season is officially over, after 4 long months, it’s finally over. While this summer had it fair share of winners that won the box office, their were plenty of losers, and boy did they lose. It’s now time to asses the winners and losers of the 2017 Summer box office.

Winner: Wonder Woman

Gal Gadot in “Wonder Woman.”

The highest grossing film of the summer by a significant margin, Wonder Woman was a much needed win for the DC extended universe and showed girl power is alive and well in Hollywood. The film saw unprecedented holds from weekend to weekend over the summer, playing similarly to 2002’s Spider-Man en route to $406.8 million domestically, making it the 7th highest grossing super-hero film of all time and the highest grossing film ever directed by a woman.

Loser: Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets

Dane DeHaan and Cara Delevigne in “Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets.”

Valerian is a prime example of what happens when you let directors go into a CGI candy shop and allow them to lose their minds on screen. While visually striking, Valerian lacked star power and chose style over substance in this over-long, over-budgeted Star Wars wannabe. The film’s box office receipts didn’t help matters either, as it grossed a puny $39.8 million at the North American box office compared to its $172.2 million budget. A bomb indeed.

Winner: Marvel Studios

“Marvel Studios.”

At this point, Marvel Studios has perfected the blockbuster formula. Guardians of the Galaxy Volume 2 grossed $389.4 million in May, showing that Star Lord and the gang won’t be going away anytime soon. Marvel Studios was also able to reap the rewards of re-booting the Spider-Man franchise with Spider-Man: Homecoming in July, grossing an impressive $321.2 million during its theatrical run.

Loser: Former Franchise Tent-Poles

“Transformers: The Last Knight”, “Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales”, and “Cars 3.”

Alien: Covenant, Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales, Cars 3, Transformers: The Last Night. What do they all have in common? They are all franchises that at one point were box-office giants who presided as the kings of the summer movie season but have now all but exhausted ideas to the point that audiences have grown tired of them. While the international box office receipts helped prevent them from flat-out bombing and in some cases made them profitable, it’s time for studios to re-think their strategies in regards to tent-pole franchises.

Winner: War for the Planet of the Apes

“War For the Planet of the Apes.”

A stunning achievement in motion capture and special effects, War for the Planet of the Apes is nothing short of technically brilliant. Add in the emotional component most summer box office films are missing along with enthralling action, and War For the Planet of the Apes proves you don’t have to be brainless to be a successful summer blockbuster.

Loser: Baywatch

“Baywatch.”

On paper, Baywatch seemed to be a no-brainer. A summer comedy filled with beaches, bikinis, and the Rock would surely breed box office success, right? Unfortunately, incompetent direction, lazy joke writing, and exploitation of female bodies made Baywatch unwatchable, making it one of the biggest duds of the summer movie season.

Winner: Rotten Tomatoes

“Rotten Tomatoes.”

If there were ever a time where the influence of the review aggregate site flexed its muscles, it was this summer. Films that boasted overwhelmingly positive reviews such as Dunkirk ($175.5 million) and Baby Driver ($104.3 million) enjoyed box office success and long theatrical runs. Maligned films such as The Mummy ($80.1) and The Dark Tower ($46.1 million) on the other hand saw their hopes and dreams of launching franchises either stall or end due to dog piling bad reviews.

Loser: The Summer Box Office

For every financially and critically successful film released this summer, there was an even more financially and critically disastrous film released. Add in an August with very few appealing films, and the summer box office is down nearly 16% compared to last year and movie going attendance is the worst it has been in 25 years. One can only hope the looming Fall movie season can pick up the slack, but the 2017 box office appears to be experiencing diminishing returns.

Bro-Reviews: The Top 5 Movies of 2017 (Thus Far)

It may not be Oscar season, but it’s never too early to discuss the best films of the year.

To this point, many would claim 2017 has been a bit of a bummer in regards to quality filmmaking, particularly pointing to a summer movie season that has seen box office receipts dwindle considerably. With the Summer movie season ending this weekend without a new wide release, it’s time to look back at the last eight months worth of movies and rank the top 5 films of 2017 thus far.

5. Baby Driver

“Baby Driver.”

In a summer filled with numerous sequels no one asked for, Baby Driver was one of the lone original works to break-out and have success financially and receive critical acclaim. While it is essentially a hipster’s interpretation of a Transporter movie, Baby Driver features terrific performances from its ensemble cast and a hilarious script from writer/director Edgar Wright. Throw in a killer soundtrack and enthralling action, and Baby Driver proves you don’t have to be an established franchise tent-pole to have success during the summer.

4. Ingrid Goes West

“Ingrid Goes West.”

Every year, there’s at least one independent film that flies under the audience’s radar only to be discovered later on the home video market. Ingrid Goes West is destined to have this fate, which is a shame considering it’s one of the most topical films of the year. It’s biting commentary on our society’s current obsession with social media and its stardom and a committed performance from lead actress Aubrey Plaza makes it one of the most underrated films of the year thus far, and should definitely be on your to-stream list in the future.

3. Get Out

“Get Out.”

If there were ever a film that was released at the perfect time, it would be writer/ director/ comedian Jordan Peele’s debut feature film. Released shortly after the election of Donald Trump (*still weird to say that*), Get Out is the greatest slave movie ever made. It’s thematic elements dealing with white America’s obsession of wanting all of the benefits of being black without the skin color is one of the most dynamic elements ever explored on film. Throw in some great imagery and horror thrills, and Get Out is proof that originality is alive and well in Hollywood.

2. Logan

“Logan.”

We’ve been waiting for a great solo Wolverine film for years, and Hugh Jackman and company finally delivered. A post-apocalyptic western action-drama masquerading as a comic-book movie, Logan is Hugh Jackman’s finest hour as the titular character, and also features Patrick Stewart’s best performance as Professor X. With high emotional stakes that have consequences, Logan is not only the most heart-wrenching comic-book films ever, but one of the most moving films released in quite sometime. Logan may be Jackman’s swan song as Wolverine, but he goes out on what could be the new gold standard of comic-book movies.

1.War For the Planet of the Apes

“War for the Planet of the Apes.”

War For the Planet of the Apes is a tremendous achievement in filmmaking. The motion-capture technology used makes for some of the best special effects ever captured on film, making the apes the most realistic as they’ve ever looked on screen. Andy Serkis of course leads the way with his touching performance as Caesar, and saves his best for last in the conclusion of what could be regarded as one of the best film trilogies ever. It’s emotional impact combined with outstanding action and performances makes War for the Planet of the Apes not only the best of the modern Planet of the Apes trilogy, but the best film of 2017 thus far.

 

Bro-Reviews: Baby Driver

The hipster incarnation of the Transporter.

Edgar Wright is one of the most talented men working in Hollywood today. His Three Flavours Cornetto Trilogy, which includes Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz, and The World’s End, is comedy at its finest. Although Scott Pilgrim vs. the World delivered meager box office results, it’s widely considered a cult classic. Despite the success of his films among film aficionados, he’s never truly made a mainstream film. Baby Driver, however, is his first foray into mainstream filmmaking, but does it retain the sharp wit and well developed characters we’ve come to know his films by?

Baby Driver sees expert getaway driver Baby (Ansel Elgort) relying on the sound and beat of his preferred soundtrack to help him navigate through the world of crime. He believes his time as a getaway driver is coming to an end, as he is very close to paying off his debt to the mysterious kingpin Doc (Kevin Spacey). Baby then begins romancing a diner waitress named Debora (Lilly James), and the two plan to run off with each other. Before they can run off and live happily ever after, Baby must complete his most challenging job of all with the most dangerous criminals in the city: Buddy (Jon Hamm), Buddy’s girlfriend Darling (Eiza González), and Bats (Jamie Foxx).

Baby Driver is essentially a Transporter movie minus the over-the-top action and the abtastic Jason Statham. What it does better than those three films (*The Transporter Refueled never happened, it just didn’t*) is having an actual story, better characters, and sharp dialogue. In other words, if Edgar Wright ever made a Transporter movie, it’d look something like this. Wright is able to put his stamp on what is otherwise a story we’ve seen done over and over again, and he gets a lot out of what is an all-star ensemble cast.

Ansel Elgort, Jamie Foxx, Eiza González, and Jon Hamm in “Baby Driver.”

Kevin Spacey delivers another fine performance as the crime lord Doc, and he shows no signs of slowing down as one of the best actors in the game. Newcomer actress Eiza González is a sultry villainous, and she commands your attention with her stunning looks and acting abilities anytime she’s on screen. Lilly James also delivers a solid performance as Baby’s love interest, as her free spirited young self represents this generation’s feelings on life and adult responsibilities to a t.

While I can’t get over the fact I feel he’s just a younger version of Josh Hartnett, Ansel Elgort is solid as a leading man. However, while his quirky trait of playing music during getaways functions well within the premise of the film, he has another quirk in which he carries a recorder around with him, records people, and then creates music with the recording. The film tries to play this up for laughs to make you believe he’s unique, but it comes across as awkward. He also has no issue with singing aloud in public, something that seems more irritating than endearing. It’s Jamie Foxx and Jon Hamm who steal the show as Bats and Buddy respectively. Both are veteran actors who are at a point in their careers where they are open to playing more character parts than being leading men. While Hamm’s Buddy has a quiet but deadly demeanor about him, Foxx’s Bats is a swaggering lunatic, making both scene stealers in the film due to their ability deliver Wright’s exceptional dialogue.

While the performances and dialogue are components of the film we expect to be done well, it’s Wright’s filming of the action scenes that is most surprising. Wright is able to film the chase scenes in such a way you can actually tell what’s occurring onscreen. On top of that, they’re thrilling and action packed, something we don’t typically expect from Wright even though he’s done it before in his previous films. We’ve come to know Wright for his writing capabilities and ability to make us laugh, but he’s actually one of the better action scene filmers working in Hollywood.

With its great performances, witty dialogue, and have you on the edge of your seat action, Baby Driver is an action-thriller that never takes its foot off the gas. A prime example that you don’t necessarily need giant robots or super heroes to make an enthralling summer action film. While it is essentially the hipster incarnation of a Transporter movie, you can chalk up Baby Driver as another win in the illustrious career of Edgar Wright.

Rating: 3/4 Stars. Pay Full Price.